The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Chrysanthemum plant, botanically known as Chrysanthemumxc3x97morifolium and hereinafter referred to by the name xe2x80x98Zesty Yomeganxe2x80x99.
The new Chrysanthemum is a naturally-occurring whole plant mutation of the Chrysanthemum cultivar Megan, disclosed in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 8,756. The new Chrysanthemum was discovered and selected by the Inventor as a single flowering plant within a population of flowering plants of the parent cultivar in October, 1996 in a controlled environment in Highstown, N.J. The selection of this plant was based on its unique ray floret color.
Asexual reproduction of the new cultivar by terminal cuttings taken in a controlled environment in Gainesville, Fla. since December, 1997, has shown that the unique features of this new Chrysanthemum are stable and reproduced true to type in successive generations.
The cultivar Zesty Yomegan has not been observed under all possible environmental conditions. The phenotype may vary somewhat with variations in environment such as temperature, daylength and light intensity, without, however, any variance in genotype.
The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined to be the unique characteristics of xe2x80x98Zesty Yomeganxe2x80x99. These characteristics in combination distinguish xe2x80x98Zesty Yomeganxe2x80x99 as a new and distinct cultivar:
1. Upright plant habit.
2. Freely branching, dense, full plants.
3. Uniform and freely flowering.
4. Duplex daisy-type inflorescences.
5. Dark pink-colored ray florets.
Compared to plants of the parent cultivar Megan, plants of the new Chrysanthemum flower earlier and differ in ray floret color.